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| Panciteria Macanista del Buen Gusto |
On my way back to Binondo Church, I crossed San Fernando Bridge again. I remembered that in old photographs, the ruined building on the left side, at the foot of the bridge, was the site of a restaurant. A wall used to carry a huge sign that read: “Panciteria Macanista del Buen Gusto” (Macanese Panciteria of Good Taste), which was referenced in Chapter 25 of “El Filibusterismo.” As Rizal described it: “At the center of the sala and beneath the red lanterns were four round tables, systematically arranged to form a square; equally round little wooden stools served as seats. In the middle of each table, according to the custom of the establishment, were laid out four small colored plates with four pastries on each one, and four tea cups with their corresponding lids, all of red porcelain. In front of each stool could be seen a bottle and two wineglasses of gleaming crystal.”
